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Kielbasa and Kraut

I was up in Great Neck the other day. It’s a nice drive north of here and there is a little Polish deli just outside of town. I happen to like this little mom and pop shop for its old world charm, with every nook and cranny filled with imports mostly from Poland and a couple of other Slavic countries. They have a wonderful homemade stuffed cabbage with tomato sauce. But I’ve come up for kielbasa. A nice foot long cured pork sausage smoked to perfection. Cooked in a deep pan of sauerkraut it goes so nicely with home fried potatoes seasoned with Hungarian smoked paprika.

Here’s what you’ll need:

1 lbs kielbasa

1 lbs sauerkraut (jar or can)

3 or 4 large red potatoes

1 large onion diced

2 rashers of bacon

Paprika, salt and pepper

In a small pot bring the potatoes to a boil and cook then just a couple of minutes… Don’t let them get too soft… When you can pierce them neatly with a knife, take then out and let them cool in the fridge.

Open the jar or can of sauerkraut add empty it juice and all into a deep pan. Now, you can cut up the kielbasa not and add it to the kraut or, if you plan allows, cook it whole and slice it later, its completely your call. In either case get the kielbasa in there, cover the pan and simmer this over a low heat.

Cut up the bacon and add it to a fry pan. Dice the onion and toss that in sauté a few minutes over a medium heat. Dice the potato’s and toss them into a bowl. Add a bit of olive oil a couple of tea spoons should do, just to give them a coating to focus heat and help the paprika adhere. Add the paprika, salt and pepper to taste and mix it well to coat the potatoes. Then, toss the mixture in with the onion and bacon. Sauté until the potatoes are nice and tender.

Check the kielbasa, and these should be done at about the same time.

All it takes now is to plate it up and get out to the guest! Serve this with a nice beer. Prost!